Rumours about who had created the potion spread quickly around the school. Their names weren't mentioned. Not seriously. The general theory seemed to be that, as it was a fourth year potion, the youngest person who could have pulled it off must have been an advanced third year or older.

"How many times can we tell you you're a genius before you get fed up?" James whispered, as they walked down the hallway to their History of Magic class.

Remus grinned. "Maybe a few more times."

Sirius clapped him on the back. "You, Remus, are a genius."

Remus laughed, as Peter nodded eagerly.

"We should focus on the Animagus thing," James continued. "At least until Christmas. We can do another prank in the New Year."

"Something to welcome everyone back?" Sirius said. James nodded.

"Of course."

They entered the classroom, heading to the back and withdrawing the necessary equipment. Unlike other classes, for History of Magic all they needed was textbook, parchment and quill. Not that James and Sirius ever used those things during the class. They always said they had more important things to focus on, and, anyway, they could always rely on Remus' notes to get them through.

Professor Binns floated through the board, and many of the students began doing something else. Doodling, reading for another class, swapping notes. Only a few – Lily and Remus among them – paid any attention to the ghost.

Binns turned to the board and wrote, in large letters, MERLIN.

"Merlin was one of the greatest wizards in our history," Professor Binns began. "He aided the non-magical King Arthur in bringing unity to Britain. He was very skilled, even among our modern standards and many of the spells and potions we use today are derived from what he created."

As Binns continued, Remus made his notes. He didn't really mind James, Sirius and Peter copying. Peter, at least, tried to make his own notes, but they were often incomplete. Remus found their history fascinating, anyway.

"It is believed that Merlin created the charm that is mentioned in Muggle legend," Binns continued. "This charm enabled King Arthur and his most loyal knights to remain alive, though asleep, beneath a tree in the Welsh countryside."

Remus jotted down the words, along with a note on the side. Muggle Legends – Arthur, tree.

Binns continued, going through Merlin's childhood, his life with the Muggle King, and ending on the death of Merlin.

"The wizard left such a lasting impression on the population that, even today, we cite his name in moments of joy or sorrow…"

The class finished, and they trailed out.

"So, what did we learn today?" James asked. "Goblin Rebellions? The formation of Gringotts? More dates that will not affect us?"

"Merlin," Remus replied.

"All right, Remus," Sirius said. "No need to be so surprised. You know we don't pay any attention to Binns."

"No, we did Merlin."

Peter nodded. "Yeah! All about him and King Arthur."

"What?" James gaped at them. "We were doing Merlin and neither of you bothered to tell us to pay attention?"

Remus rolled his eyes. "When has that ever made you pay attention?"

James seemed to think about it for a moment, before he shrugged and began whistling, as they made their way to the Great Hall for lunch.

They, along with the rest of the school, carried on with their normal routines for the last few weeks of school. Between classes, the four friends read up on Animagi, practised their spells and did their homework. All four planned to stay over Christmas.

The term drew to a close, and the homework eased off. Remus, of course, got started early on the work due in after the New Year, while the others focused their energies on their extracurricular activities. James and Sirius practiced on the Quidditch pitch when they had a chance, and continued exploring the castle, etching out routes and any hidden tunnels they found for Remus to add to the map.

When they woke up the first day of the holiday, the castle was almost empty.

Most had left early that morning, to join their families for Christmas. The four friends made their way to the Great Hall for breakfast, where all the tables had only a few students on them. Most of the teachers were absent, although a couple were happily eating and chatting to each other.

"It's eerie, isn't it?" James muttered, as they took their seats at the Gryffindor table. "I mean, it's so quiet."

The other three nodded their agreement, before diving into the food appearing on the plates.

No more had been said about the potion a few weeks prior, and none of the houses had lost any points. Still, there were some students who still discussed it, who still debated who could have pulled off such an epic prank.

"Don't forget, Slughorn's party is tonight," Remus said, gaze falling on James. "And you have to come."

James groaned, rolling his eyes. "Do we really? The people in his little club are so…so…up themselves."

"Half of them think they're amazing just because they come from purebred families," Sirius muttered, jamming his fork into his sausage. "Like it makes them better than everyone else."

"You didn't have to say yes."

Remus turned to James. "If I hadn't said yes, Slughorn would probably have turned down my request to get ingredients. We wouldn't have had a potion and you wouldn't have had your prank." He had lowered his voice, despite the fact that there was hardly anyone near enough to hear him.

James let out a long, drawn out sigh. "All right. Fine. We'll go."

"What? I never agreed to that."

"You're coming, Sirius. End of. If me and Remus have to, then you do, too. And, besides, now we know how useful it is to keep on Slughorn's good side." He grinned, winked at Remus and bit into his slice of toast.

X X X

Sirius brushed down his dress robes as he stared at himself in the mirror. "I can't believe these are the only ones I have," he muttered. The robes were black, with silver and green trim. "Seriously. Look at them. They're Slytherin colours."

Remus stood just behind him, arms crossed. His own robes were a deep blue colour that, his mother said, brought out his eyes. James wore dark red, with gold at the trim.

"Well, your family are all Slytherin," James commented.

Sirius let out a hefty sigh.

Remus rolled his eyes before heading to his bedside cabinet. He reached in, pulled out a book and started flicking through it, his tongue poking out.

"I know it's in here somewhere…"

"What are you looking for?" Sirius turned around, and James bounded forward to stare into the mirror as he combed his hair. Peter had settled himself in front of the fire in the Common Room, reading some book Remus had lent him.

"You'll see. Ah! Here we are."

He grinned, crossed towards Sirius and pointed his wand at the robes. He muttered the spell, and two streams came out of his wand, one gold and one red. They wrapped around the trim of Sirius' dress robes, and seemed to absorb the silver and green, replacing the colours with those that had come from the wand.

"There. Better?"

Sirius turned back to the mirror and grinned. "Well hello, you handsome devil."

"Remus, did you just cast a spell to inflate Sirius' head?" James muttered, still focusing on his hair. Remus laughed, and the three finished getting ready.

They headed to the room Professor Slughorn had booked for the party.

"You don't think Peter minds, do you?" Sirius asked. "I mean, that we were invited and he wasn't."

"I don't think so," Remus answered. "I mean…he knows none of us want to go. It's just going to be standing around and listening to everyone boast about why they're in the Club." He shrugged. "Nothing to really be excited for, is it?"

They reached the room.

As soon as they stepped inside, they were amazed. Snow fell from the ceiling, and icicles dangled on the edges of the room. A buffet had been laid out against one wall, with a variety of different food available. A few of the teachers were present, and they floated around, talking to the other students present. The walls were white, made to look like ice, and Sirius reached out, putting his palm flat against it.

"It's warm," he said, surprised.

"Ah! Misters Lupin, Potter and Black!"

The three turned to the voice, facing Professor Slughorn. He smiled, before shaking each of their hands in turn.

"So very glad you could make it. So very, very glad. And congratulations on being the youngest students here this year."

They glanced around. Most of the others were fifth years and above, though there were a few third and fourth years present, too. Sirius cringed on spotting Lucius Malfoy and his cousin Narcissa, along with her sister Bella. James smiled and waved at Gerard Floss, standing with the Ravenclaw Quidditch Captain. There were a few other players there, from various houses, but Sirius had been right.

Most of those at the party were from pureblood families.

"Go, mingle!" Slughorn urged, gently pushing the boys further into the room. "Enjoy yourselves!"

The boys smiled weakly, glancing around the room as they decided where to go first. James shrugged, before nodding his head to the buffet table. Sirius grinned, and soon they were filling their plates up with all sorts of food.

"This looks great," James muttered, picking up a triangle samosa. He bit into it, waited a few seconds, and grabbed a few more. "Yep. Great."

They moved off to the side of the room as they ate, glancing around. Eventually, a girl and boy from the year above approached them. The girl wore a simple dress that flowed past her knees, dark blue. The boy's dress robes, like Sirius', were black, but the trim on them was yellow.

The girl held her hand out to Remus.

"Rebecca Howell. You're Remus Lupin, right?"

"Err, yeah." He shook it, glancing at James and Sirius for support. The other boy hung back, looking more than just a bit awkward. The girl nodded curtly.

"And this must be James Potter and Sirius Black."

She shook their hands in turn, before gesturing to her friend to step forward.

"This is Matthew, my twin brother." She flashed a wide smile. "We've very unusual. Muggle parents, with two children who both have magical abilities." She seemed very proud of that fact, though her brother didn't seem bothered by it. "We have both been in the top five per cent of our year since we started here."

"Remus is the top in our year," James said, tilting his chin back just a bit.

"I know," she drawled, staring at him. Her smile had disappeared but when she turned to Remus, it returned. "Us Ravenclaws have formed our own club. Much more…prestigious than this one." She rolled her eyes, as if 'this one' was highly beneath her. "The top five per cent of every year, no matter what house they're in." She reached into her purse, and took out a small card, handing it to Remus. "We would be honoured if you join us. Come on, Matthew." She turned, walking off with her brother trailing behind. He shrugged at the boys, as his sister led him to some of the other students.

"Looks like Remus has made some new friends," Sirius commented, staring hard at Rebecca. "What do you think, Remus? You going to join their little swot club?"

Remus shrugged, glancing down at the card. "I don't know."

"You don't know?" Sirius gasped. "Remus! How could you even think of joining it?"

"Well," a light blush appeared on his face, "it might be good for me."

"How so?" James asked, thoughtfully. Sirius turned his gaping face on James.

"Well, they might…you know, discuss things I don't know." Remus shrugged. "I could learn things; learn about stuff we won't know for a few years. And it could actually be a good way to make some connections. You know, for later."

James nodded slowly.

"What? Remus, they're going to be just as bad as the pure blood kids! You…you...you…"

"He has a point," James said, a firm tone in his voice. "Come on, Sirius, let him have this. We have Quidditch."

"And he has Peter! What will Peter do, huh? Huh? While we're off practicing and Remus is with his little club…"

"So you've received an invitation too, have you, Lupin?"

The three boys whirled around to see Severus Snape standing near them, a sneer on his face.

"And I assume, from your conversation, neither Potter nor Black made the top five."

"Even if I had," Sirius spat, "I wouldn't want to join."

"But there's so much for you to learn, Black." His eyes fell on Remus. "If you decide to attend, Lupin, I will put aside the actions of your friends for as long as we are in the club. I will treat you with the same respect that everyone in that club deserves." He glared at Sirius and James, before half turning and stalking off.

James was frowning. "That was…not like Snape."

"What, the whole polite, respect thing?"

James shook his head. "No. When has he ever confronted us, like that?" James leant against the wall, crossing his arms. "He seems very…confident."

Sirius shrugged. "Maybe him and Lily got together." He shuddered. "Though I'd like to think more of her than that."

"Don't say things like that," James snapped, his face flushing red. "Evans is a pain, but she's better than that slime ball."

Remus glanced around. Snape was talking to Rebecca and her brother, and Slughorn was very animatingly engaged in conversation with a group of older students.

"No one will miss us if we slip out," he muttered. "I'm feeling tired anyway. We should go." He was silently pleading with the other two, knowing that if they stayed, either Snape would goad them or they would goad him. Either way, it couldn't end well and they'd all end up losing points.

"Yeah," Sirius muttered, nodding his head. "This is boring. Let's head back to the Common Room."

James agreed and, together, the three boys slipped out, Remus still clutching the invitation.